Fragrance sampler insert

ABSTRACT

A fragrance sampler is provided which is made from two plies, a bottom ply and a top ply, of material. A cosmetic, such as a wet fragrance, sample is deposited on the bottom ply. A well is formed in at least one of the plies and is sized and shaped to surround the sample. The two plies are then adhered together to form a liquid tight seal between the two plies and around the well.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This is a continuation patent application of the continuation patentapplication having Ser. No. 12/231,827, filed on Sep. 5, 2008, which isa continuation patent application of the continuation application Ser.No. 11/726,117, filed on Mar. 21, 2007, now abandoned, which is acontinuation patent application of the continuation application Ser. No.10/464,392, filed on Jun. 17, 2003, now abandoned, which is acontinuation-in-part of pending application Ser. No. 10/233,136 filed onAug. 30, 2002, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,003,116 which in turn is acontinuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 09/858,566, filed May 17,2001, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,461,620, which, in turn, is acontinuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 09/531,296, filed Mar. 20,2000, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,251,408, all of which are entitled FragranceSampler Insert, and all of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to fragrance samplers which are inserted inmagazines or used in direct mailings.

Traditionally fragrance samplers were dry pre-scented blotter cards thathad to be individually overwrapped to contain the fragrance for use indirect mail or magazine advertising. Beginning in the late 1970's, themicro-encapsulated Scentstrip® style magazine and direct mail insert wasintroduced. The Scentstrip insert is described in U.S. Pat. No.5,093,182 to Ross. This product was produced on wide web offset printingequipment and therefore offered significant cost efficiencies for massmarketing. However, this was still a dry sample since the water moisturein the deposited fragrance slurry would very quickly wick into the papersubstrate and leave the product sample dry. In fact, the entiretechnology depended on this moisture wicking since the wet microcapsuleswould not bond to the paper and would not break upon opening of thesampler. The microcapsules only break and release the fragrance oil whenthey are dry and are bonded to the paper. The draw back with thisproduct was that it did not replicate the actual wet perfume productvery well. In order to sample the fragrances in its real life wet form,the moisture wicking of the wet fragrance slurry deposited in the wideweb offset printing process needed to be prevented. This was most easilyaccomplished by using existing narrow web flexographic label printingtechnology to create a pressure sensitive product that incorporated awet fragrance or cosmetic sample material between impervious barriermaterials such as plastic films and foil structures.

Currently there are three main fragrance sampler patents that guide usin wet fragrance or cosmetic sampling in magazines and direct mail. Oneis U.S. Pat. No. 5,391,420 to Bootman, which describes a pressuresensitive label comprising two plies of a film or plastic material: onebottom pressure sensitive ply, a deposit of fragrance material and anoverlay of a second ply which traps said fragrance deposit. The sealingis by heat seal. The draw back of this product is that the fragrancematerial is often forced into and through the seal areas under pressurefrom the stacking forces of many magazines or inserts in distribution.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,161,688 to Muchin perfects upon the Bootman product byintroducing a center ply material which has a die-cut window. Thiswindow ply is introduced onto the bottom pressure sensitive ply and thuscreates a well for the fragrance material. The top, third ply is thenadded and the result is that stacking forces are distributed on to thewidow ply and the fragrance material is exposed to less forces that maylead to seal failures and leakage: a major defect in the originalproduct.

A modification of this second patent concept is described in U.S. Pat.No. 5,622,263 to Greenland. Greenland uses a liquid polyethylene orother hot liquid plastic material that creates the above-mentioned welland also assists in the heat sealing process. The draw back of theMuchin patent is that the additional window ply involves additional costand manufacturing complications for die-cutting and introducing thethird ply in the process. The Greenland concept also adds additionalmaterial cost and slows the process as the liquid plastic material needsto be deposited and bonded to the top and bottom ply. Further, the hotliquid plastic material introduces foreign odor and can, in somecircumstances, contaminate the cosmetic or fragrance sampling material.

There are various other patents that deal with cosmetic sampling.Gunderman (U.S. Pat. No. 5,690,130) discloses a sampling device with aunit dose of cosmetic that is screen printed onto a base paper with aperimeter adhesive and clear film overlay. In this case a well area isembossed to receive an integral applicator. The well is not designed asa receptor for the cosmetic product nor is the embossing incorporatedinto the seal so as to afford strength and allow the seal to withstandpressure better. Also, this sampler uses screen printing and, asdisclosed, is not intended or capable of delivering a wet liquid dose ofcosmetic material. Lastly, a pressure sensitive base material is notenvisioned which would allow automatic affixing as a label onto magazineor direct mail materials as the current Invention envisions.

Gunderman (U.S. Pat. No. 5,566,693) describes a screen printed samplerthat delivers a cosmetic dose under a clear film overlay with pressuresensitive base material allowing affixing as a label. Again, thissampler is not designed to deliver a wet fragrance. The fragranceformulation requires fragrance to be mixed in a powder-based vehicle sothat it can be screen printed. Also the sealing is not designed tocontain wet fragrance or provide enough strength to contain liquid understacking pressure. Further no embossing is envisioned to hold a cosmeticdose or to create seal wall integrity.

Gunderman (U.S. Pat. No. 5,562,112) envisions a lipstick sampler, againwith neither a well or an embossed seal wall feature.

Ashcraft (U.S. Pat. No. 5,249,676) describes a multi-layer film with aflavor carrier layer between barrier layers. This does not create a wetfragrance sampler and there is no provision to create seals by embossingor otherwise that will allow a wet cosmetic sample to be contained underpressure.

Moir (U.S. Pat. No. 5,192,386) describes a screen printed, two-plysampler with perimeter adhesive and clear film overlay. The cosmeticingredient is a cosmetic powder, a heated oily, non-liquid waxymaterial, or a fragrance in a dry powder formulation. The product isdry, not wet, and there is no provision for creating heat sealed,embossed or interlocking walls to define a well and create internal sealstrength sufficient to withstand stacking forces.

Szycher et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,880,690) shows a perfume patch.

Moir (U.S. Pat. No. 4,848,378) discloses a cosmetic screen printed,two-ply sampler that allows a pattern deposit of the cosmetic ingredientin the form of a non-smeary powder. This product is not pressuresensitive has no embossed wells or seal walls and does not deliver a wetsample.

Dreger (U.S. Pat. No. 4,769,264) discloses a label product comprising atleast two sheets, bonded by adhesive, with microencapsulated fragrance.The liquid fragrance inside the microspheres is so little that it doesnot create a wet rendering of the product and is as dry to the touch andin current day dry “scents/rips”. There is no mention of creating a wellto hold the cosmetic dose in a confined area, nor is any use made ofembossing or interlocking seal walls to create an improved seal andresist stacking pressure.

Moir (U.S. Pat. No. 4,751,934) discloses another version of a screenprinted cosmetic powder formulation that may include fragrance in atwo-ply pressure sensitive label construction. The seals of the two plylayers are by adhesive seal and the product rendering is dry or waxy, asin the lipstick dose version, but not wet as contemplated in the currentinvention. No embossing or debossing is used to create well areas orbuild wall seals.

Fraser (U.S. Pat. No. 4,720,423) describes using in a multi-layer striphaving an adhesive with frangible microcapsules as a package overwrap.This product does not render a wet sample and create wells or seal wallseither.

Charbonneau (U.S. Pat. No. 4,606,956) discloses a pressure sensitive twoply label construction with conventional microencapsulated slurryapplied wet and then allowed to dry as is the conventional practice inthe manufacture of scent strips. The product sample is rendered in a drystate, no wells or embossed walls are used to create a more imperviousseal that can hold up to stacking forces.

There are several other patents that disclose fragrance samplers.Charbonneau (U.S. Pat. No. 4,606,956) shows an on page fragrancesampling device. Charbonneau (U.S. Pat. No. 4,661,388) shows a padfragrance sampling device. Fraser (U.S. Pat. No. 4,720,423) shows apackage opening system. Moir et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,751,934) disclosesa cosmetic sampler. Dreger (U.S. Pat. No. 4,769,264) discloses an onpage fragrance sampling device. Moir et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,848,378)discloses a cosmetic sampler. Moir et al. (U.S. Pat. No. 5,192,386)discloses a method of making a cosmetic sampler. Ashcraft et al. (U.S.Pat. No. 5,149,676) discloses a flavor burst structure and method ofmaking it. Gundermann (U.S. Pat. No. 5,562,112) discloses a lipsticksampler. Gundermann (U.S. Pat. No. 5,566,693) discloses a fragrancesampler. Gundermann (U.S. Pat. No. 5,690,130) discloses a cosmeticsampler with an integrated applicator. Sweeny (U.S. Pat. No. 4,493,869)discloses fragrance microcapsules clear substrate. Turnbull (U.S. Pat.No. 4,487,801) discloses a fragrance releasing pull-apart sheet.Greenland (U.S. Pat. No. 5,622,263) discloses a sampler package andmethod of making it. Muchin (U.S. Pat. No. 5,161,688) discloses asampler and method of making the sampler. Bootman (U.S. Pat. No.5,391,420) discloses fragrance laden pouch samplers.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Briefly stated, a sampler is provided for insertion into an article suchas a magazine or a mass mailing. The sampler includes a bottom ply and atop ply, both of which have an upper surface and a lower surface. A wellis formed in at least one of the top and bottom plies to receive thesample. The well can be formed by a wall on the bottom ply, or can beformed as a depression in the bottom ply. A cosmetic sample (such as awet fragrance sample) is deposited on the bottom ply. The top ply andbottom ply are adhered together to form a seal to substantially preventleakage of the sample. A barrier formation can be formed in the bottomply. The barrier formation is positioned to be within the area definedby the wall and is sized and shaped to impede the flow of said sample onsaid bottom ply. For example, the barrier formation can comprise aplurality of dimples, knurls, baffles, or grooves.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a fragrance sampler of the presentinvention prior to assembly of the sampler;

FIG. 2 a cross-sectional view of the sampler when assembled;

FIG. 3 is a schematic drawing of the sampler producing process;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of an alternative construction of thefragrance sampler;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of another alternative construction ofthe fragrance sampler;

FIG. 6 schematic drawing of an alternative process for producing thesample of either FIG. 2 or 4;

FIGS. 7A-C show three alternative constructions of the fragrance samplerwhich include single walls;

FIGS. 8A-B show two other alternative constructions of the fragrancesampler which include double walls;

FIGS. 9A-D show alternative constructions of the sampler bottom ply,wherein the bottom ply is provided with flow barriers;

FIG. 10 is a schematic view of an alternative process for manufacturingthe sampler;

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of a further embodiment of the samplerwhich is similar to the sampler of FIG. 5, but which lacks the interlockfeature of the sampler of FIG. 5;

FIG. 12 is a cross-sectional view of yet another embodiment of thesample in which walls on the top and bottom plies are aligned, and thus,the sampler lacks the interlock feature;

FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view of the sampler of FIG. 12, but withthe embossed walls in a collapsed condition; and,

FIGS. 14 and 15 are cross-sectional view of a sampler similar to thesampler of FIGS. 12 and 13, but which has a double wall construction,rather than a single wall construction.

Corresponding reference numerals will be used throughout the severalfigures of the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following detailed description illustrates the invention by way ofexample and not by way of limitation. This description will clearlyenable one skilled in the art to make and use the invention, anddescribes several embodiments, adaptations, variations, alternatives anduses of the invention, including what I presently believe is the bestmode of carrying out the invention.

A first embodiment of a sampler 1 of the present invention is shown inFIGS. 1 and 2. The sampler 1 includes a top ply 3 and a bottom ply 5,both of which are preferably formed from a foil, a polyester, or apolyethylene laminated structure. The plies can alternatively be made ofacetate or other paper, foil, and plastic film laminated or nonlaminated barrier plies. To facilitate affixing the sampler, forexample, in a magazine or other publication, a pressure sensitiveadhesive can be applied to either the top ply 3 or bottom ply 5 of thesampler.

The top and bottom plies 3 and 5 each include top and bottom surfaces 3a, 5 a and 3 b, 5 b, respectively. A wall 7 is formed in the bottom ply5 which extends up from the bottom ply's upper surface 5 a. The wall 7,as shown, has an inner surface 7 a, an outer surface 7 b, and a topsurface 7 c which define a channel 7 d in the bottom ply bottom surface5 b. The channel 7 d is preferably rectangular in cross-section (butcould have other configurations), and the wall 7 defines a “doublewall.” The wall 7 also defines a well 9 into which a wet fragrancesample 11 can be deposited. The fragrance sample 11 can be a sample of aperfume, or a cosmetic creme, lotion, hair color tint, lip stick,powder, or other cosmetic ingredient.

An opposing wall 13 is formed in the top ply 3 and extends upwardly fromthe top ply top surface 3 a (with reference to FIG. 2). The wall 13 hasan inner surface 13 a, an outer surface 13 b, and a top surface 13 cwhich, in combination, define a channel 13 d in the top ply bottomsurface 3 b (again, with reference to FIG. 2). The top ply channel 13 dcorresponds in shape to the bottom ply wall 7. As with the bottom plychannel 7 d, the top ply channel 13 d is preferably rectangular incross-section (but could have other configurations that correspond tothe configuration of the bottom ply channel 7 d), and the wall 13 is a“double wall.” As seen in FIG. 2, the wall 13 in the upper ply hasdimensions slightly larger than the dimensions of the bottom ply wall 7,and the channel 13 d is slightly wider than the channel 7 d. Thus, thetop ply wall 13 receives the bottom ply wall 7, as seen in FIG. 2, sothat the walls 7 a-c defining the lower ply channel 7 d aresubstantially adjacent the walls 13 a-c defining the upper ply channel13 d.

The top and bottom ply walls 7 and 13 are preferably formed by anembossing/debossing process.

As can be seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, when the walls 7 and 13 are formed, thetop and bottom plies each include a frame 15, 17 surrounding the walls 7and 13, respectively. The top ply 3 and bottom ply 5 are adheredtogether to cover and close the well 9 so that the sample 11 will besealed in the well 9 between the two plies. The plies can be joined byheat sealing or sonically sealing the two plies together or using anadhesive to bond the top plies together. If an adhesive is used, theadhesive can be cationic cure coating adhesive, or other equallyacceptable adhesive which will form a liquid tight barrier to preventpremature release of the fragrance contained in the well 9.

Although the walls 7 and 13 are shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 to be “doublewalls” with one wall being received in the channel of the other, one ofthe walls 7 and 13 could alternatively be formed as single walls as seenin the sampler 1′ of FIG. 4. The sampler 1′ includes a top ply 3′ and abottom ply 5′. The top and bottom plies 3′ and 5′ each include top andbottom surfaces 3 a′, 5 a′ and 3 b′, 5 b′. A wall 7′ extends up from thebottom ply's upper surface 5 a′. Unlike the wall 7 of the sampler 1 ofFIGS. 1 and 2, the wall 7′ is a single wall. The wall 7′ is spacedinwardly from the outer edge of the sampler bottom ply 5′ and extendsaround the bottom ply 5′ to form a well 9′ into which a wet fragrancesample 11′ can be deposited.

An opposing wall 13′ extends up from the top ply top surface 3 a′. Thewall 13′ has an inner surface 13 a′, an outer surface 13 b′, and a topsurface 13 c′ which, in combination, define a channel 13 d′ in the topply bottom surface 3 b′. The top ply channel 13 d′ is sized to receivethe bottom ply wall 7′, so that the walls 7′ and 13′ are engaged whenthe sampler 1′ is formed.

Another alternative construction for the fragrance sampler is shown inFIG. 5. In this construction, the sampler 1″ includes a top ply 3″ and abottom ply 5″ having upper and lower surfaces 3 a″,5 a″ and 3 b″, 5 b″,respectively. Unlike the embodiments of FIGS. 1 and 4, the fragrancesampler 1″ includes a well 9″ formed in the bottom ply 5″ which holdsthe fragrance sample 11″. Unlike the wells of samplers 1 and 1′ (FIGS.1, 2, and 4) in which the wells are above or on top of the bottom ply,the well 9″ is below the plane of the bottom ply 5″. The well 9″ can beformed by either an embossing or debossing process. The top ply 3″includes a wall 13″ which extends from the top ply bottom surface 3 b″.The wall 13″ is sized to be received in the well 9″ so that, when thesampler 1″ is formed, the wall 13″ will be adjacent the wall 7″ of thewell 9″ and so that the two walls will engage each other to form aliquid tight seal to retain the liquid fragrance sample in the well 9″.Unlike the samplers 1 and 1′ of FIGS. 1-4, the sampler 1″ includes no“double walls”, rather, both the walls 7″ and 13″ are single walls.

The process for producing the samplers 1, 1′, and 1″ is shownschematically in FIG. 3. Webs of the top and bottom ply material areoriginally contained on rollers 21 and 23, respectively. The top plymaterial is pulled off the top ply roller 21 and passed through aprinter station 25 and then through an embossing station 27. At theprinter station 25 desired graphics are printed on the top surface 3 a,3 a′, 3 a″ of the top ply 3, 3′, 3″. The top ply wall 13, 13′, 13″ isformed at the embossing station 27. The top foil laminated ply isprinted on a narrow web flexographic or letter press printing press,with all subsequent finishing steps performed either in-line oroff-line.

While the top ply is being processed, the bottom ply material is pulledoff the bottom ply roller 23 and passed through an embossing station 29where the bottom ply wall 7, 7′, 7″ is formed. A flat bed embossing toolis used to push up or emboss the wall 7, 7′, 7″ on the bottom ply toform the well 9, 9′, 9″. The bottom ply embossing can be also be formedby rotary embossing methods.

The bottom ply 5, 5′, 5″ is passed under an injection station 31 where aliquid fragrance sample is deposited in the well 9, 9′, 9″. The sample11, 11′, 11″ can be deposited in any other desired manner, such asextrusion, spray, flexographic equipment or silkscreen.

After the top ply has been printed and after the wall 13, 13′, 13″ isformed in the top ply, the top ply is passed about a pair of rollers 33and 35 to bring the top ply 3, 3′, 3″ into close proximity with thebottom ply 5, 5′, 5″. The path of travel of the bottom ply is preferablysubstantially horizontal, at least after the fragrance sample has beendeposited in the bottom ply well 9, 9′, 9″, to avoid spilling of thesample. Thus, the top ply 3, 3′, 3″ is preferably brought to the bottomply 5, 5′, 5″. However, the process could be designed so that the bottomply is brought up to the top ply. The two plies are then passed througha sealing station 37 where the two plies are adhered together to form aliquid tight seal which will contain the fragrance sample in thechamber. The sealing station interlocks with the well wall 7, 7′, 7″with the top ply wall 13, 13′, 13″ to form a safe, closed well for thesample material. As can be appreciated, the webs of top ply and bottomply material move at an indexed rate such that when the two plies arebrought together at the sealing station, the top ply wall 13, 13′, 13″will be in alignment with the bottom ply wall 7, 7′, 7″. The sealingstation 37 is preferably is a heat sealer, and the top and bottom pliescan be adhered or sealed together for example, by welding (such asfriction, sonic, or ultrasonic welding), or other standard heat sealingprocesses which will create a seal between the two plies. Alternatively,as noted above, the sealing station can utilize an adhesive, such ascationic cure coating adhesives, traditional cohesive seals, or adhesiveseals, which will bind the top and bottom plies together to form theseal.

The joined plies are then passed to a die-cut station 39 where sideportions of the frames 15 and 17 are removed from the formed samplers.The die-cutting step can be performed with either rotary or flat bedequipment. The formed samplers are then collected on a product roller41. Product is delivered in roll form for automatic applications toother printed materials. The die-cutting station 39 can also formperforations between adjacent samplers to facilitate separation of thesamplers. The waste material can be collected on a waste roller 43.

If desired, a pressure sensitive material with a release liner can beincorporated into the bottom ply so as to result in a product that canlater be readily applied to another substrate using affixing equipment.Alternatively, the pressure sensitive adhesive with its release linercan be applied to the bottom layer ply. The pressure sensitive adhesivecan be applied to the bottom ply either as a pre-treatment or after theembossing/debossing process.

An alternative production process is shown in FIG. 6. As with theprocess of FIG. 3, webs of the top and bottom ply material areoriginally contained on rollers 21 and 23, respectively. The top plymaterial is pulled off the top ply roller 21 and passed through aprinter station 25 where desired graphics are printed on the top surfaceof the top ply. At the same time, the bottom ply material is pulled offthe bottom ply roller 23 under an injection station 31 where a liquidfragrance sample is deposited on the bottom ply. As can be appreciated,in this version, the liquid fragrance sample is deposited on the bottomply prior to the formation of the walls of the top and bottom plies.

After the top ply has been printed, the top ply is passed about a pairof rollers 33 and 35 to bring the top ply into close proximity with thebottom ply. The path of travel of the bottom ply is preferablysubstantially horizontal, at least after the fragrance sample has beendeposited on the bottom ply to avoid spilling of the sample. Thus, thetop ply is preferably brought to the bottom ply. However, the processcould be designed so that the bottom ply is brought up to the top ply.The two plies are then passed through a sealing station 37. At thesealing station 37, the walls of the top and bottom plies are formed,and the two plies are adhered together to form a liquid tight seal whichwill contain the fragrance sample in the chamber. The sealing stationinterlocks with the well wall with the top ply wall to form a safe,closed well for the sample material. As can be appreciated, the webs oftop ply and bottom ply material move at an indexed rate such that whenthe two plies are brought together at the sealing station, the fragrancewill be within the walls formed at the sealing station and the printingon the top ply will be above the liquid fragrance sample. The sealingstation 37 is preferably a heat sealer, which embosses/debosses the topand bottom ply walls in the sampler at the same time the sampler pliesare heat sealed together.

The joined plies are then passed to a die-cut station 39 where sideportions of the frames 15 and 17 are removed from the formed samplers.The die-cutting step can be performed with either rotary or flat bedequipment. The formed samplers are then collected on a product roller41. Product is delivered in roll form for automatic applications toother printed materials. The waste material can be collected on a wasteroller 43.

In another variation, the walls in the bottom ply can be “pre-formed” toallow for filling of the well in an off-line operation.

As can be appreciated, the sampler of the present invention is easilyformed from only two plies of material. The top and bottom ply walls aresubstantially adjacent each other, to engage each other to form a liquidtight seal around the fragrance sample. Additionally, the adjacent wallswill reinforce each other to enable the walls to carry the stacking orcompression forces to reduce seal failures and fragrance leaks.

Several different alternative configurations of the fragrance samplerare shown in FIGS. 7A-9D. In FIG. 7A, the fragrance sampler 100 has atop ply 103 and a bottom ply 105. The bottom ply 105 is flat. That is,it does not include any walls or wells which define a chamber. Rather,the top ply has a pair of spaced apart walls 113A and 113B which areconcentric with each other, and which extend downwardly from the bottomsurface of the top ply. The sampler 100 is formed in substantially thesame way as described above, with the fragrance sample being depositedon the bottom ply 105 in an area which will be surrounded by the wall113B, so as to be contained within the sampler upon sealing of thesampler. As can be appreciated, the two plies can be reversed, so thatthe walls 113A,B form a chamber into which the fragrance sample isdeposited during formation of the sampler. In this case, the well willbe formed in the bottom ply, and the top ply will be flat. The top plywill then be sealed (such as by heat sealing) to the bottom ply to forma liquid tight seal between the two plies.

The sampler 100A shown in FIG. 7B includes the top ply 103 identical tothe top ply 103 of the sampler 100 (FIG. 7A), and a bottom ply 105A. Thebottom ply includes a single wall 107 which extends upwardly from theupper surface of the bottom ply to define a fragrance chamber 109. Thebottom ply wall 107 is positioned to be contained within the top plywall 113B, and sized so that its outer surface will abut the innersurface of the top ply wall 113B. Thus, the walls 107 and 113B willeffectively engage each other when the sampler is sealed.

The sampler 100B shown in FIG. 7C includes the top ply 103 identical tothe top ply 103 of the sampler 100 (FIG. 7A), and a bottom ply 105B. Thebottom ply 105B includes a pair of spaced apart walls 107A and 107Bwhich are concentric with each other, the wall 107B being containedwithin the wall 107A. As seen, the top ply walls and bottom ply wallsare sized to be off-set from each other, such that the bottom ply wall107A is received between the top ply walls 113A and 113B; and the bottomply wall 107B is received inwardly of the top ply wall 113B. Thus, thewalls 113A,B and 107A,B mesh with each other.

The samplers 100, 100A, and 100B all include single walls, as opposed todouble walls, such as the walls 7 and 13 of the sampler 1 (FIG. 2). Thesamplers 200 and 200A shown in FIGS. 8A and 8B, respectively, includeonly double walls. The sampler 200 (FIG. 8A) includes a top ply 203 anda bottom ply 205. The bottom ply 205 is identical to the bottom ply 105(FIG. 7A); it is flat and has no walls, wells, etc. The top ply 203includes a pair of double walls 213A and 213B which are concentric witheach other, the wall 213B being formed within the wall 213A. As seen inFIG. 8A, the concentric double walls, which are adjacent each other,give the top ply a crenellated appearance. As can be appreciated, thesampler 200 is similar to the sampler 100, except that the single topply walls 113A,B of the sampler 100 have been replaced with the doublewalls 213A,B. Hence, the sampler 200 would be formed substantially thesame way as the sampler 100. As with the sample 100, the sampler 200could be formed such that the walls are formed in the bottom ply todefine a well into which the sample is deposited. The top ply would thenbe flat. After the sample is deposited in the well, the two plies arebrought together, as discussed above, to adhere the two plies togetherto form a liquid tight seal between the two plies.

The sampler 200A (FIG. 8B) is somewhat similar to the sampler 1 (FIG.2). It includes a top ply 203A and a bottom ply 203B. The top ply 203Aincludes a double wall 213 which extends downwardly from the top ply'sbottom surface. The bottom ply includes an upwardly extending wall 207.In the sampler 1 the wall 7 is received in the channel defined by thewall 13. In the sampler 200A, the respective location of the bottom plywall has been moved relative to the top ply wall, so that the outersurface of the bottom ply wall 201 is adjacent the inner surface of thetop ply wall 213 when the sampler is formed.

FIGS. 9A-9D show various alternative configurations to the wells 309A-Din the bottom plies 305A-D. In FIG. 9A, the well 309A is provided with abottom surface having dimples 306A. The dimples are preferably formed ina desired pattern in the bottom of the well 309A. In FIG. 9B, the well309B is provided with knurls 306B in the bottom surface of the well. InFIG. 9C, the well 309C is provided with baffles 306C in the form ofcrenellations which extend across the well. And, in FIG. 9D, the well309D is provided with triangular grooves or hatches 306D in the bottomsurface of the well. In each of the bottom plies 305A-D, the formations306A-D in the bottom surface of the well provides' barriers to the flowof the wet sample which is deposited in the well. The four formationsshown are illustrative only, and other types of formations which willimpede the flow of a wet sample can also be used. The barriers shown inFIGS. 9A-D can be incorporated into any of the samplers discussed above.The barriers can be formed in any desired manner, but are preferablyformed in the same manner that the top and bottom ply walls are formed.

FIG. 10 shows a method, somewhat similar to the method of FIG. 6, forproducing the samplers. In this method, the top and bottom plies arepre-formed—that is, the various walls in the top and bottom plies areformed in a first operation to form a continuous web of sampler top andbottom plies. The two webs are formed onto rolls 21′ and 23′ from whichthe webs 3′ and 5′ are pulled. As can be appreciated, the two webs 3′and 5′ threaded into the machinery, such that when they are broughttogether at the sealing station 37, the two plies will be in register.Prior to reaching the sealing station, the bottom ply 5′ is brought pastthe injection station 31 where the sample is injected onto the ply 5′.The web 5′ is threaded into the machinery so that the sample will bedeposited in the well of the bottom ply (if the well is preformed). Theweb then passes through the cutting stating 39 where the sealed web iseither perforated, or cut, to produce separable (or separated) samplerswhich can then be inserted in a magazine, mailer, etc.

The samplers of FIGS. 1-9D all include interlocking walls, as describedabove. The samplers of FIGS. 11-14, on the other hand, do not haveinterlocking walls. The sampler 400 of FIG. 11 is similar to the sampler1″ of FIG. 5. The sampler 400 includes a top ply 402 and a bottom ply404. Like the bottom ply of the sampler 1″, the bottom ply 404 has awell 406 that is formed in the bottom ply by an embossing or debossingprocedure. The well 406 is below the plane of the bottom ply 404, and isshown to be generally concave and curved (as opposed to rectangular).The top ply 402 includes a wall 408, which is shown to be a double wallsimilar to the wall 13 of the sampler 10 (FIG. 1). However, the wall 408is positioned such that its inner surface is approximately aligned withthe periphery of the well 406. Thus, the bottom surface 408 a of thewall will contact the upper surface of the bottom ply 404. The sampler400 can be formed using any of the methods described above. The samplewill be received in the well 406, and, in a subsequent step, the wallbottom surface 408 a will be sealed to the bottom ply top surface toform a liquid tight seal around the well. The seal between the wallbottom surface and the bottom ply top surface can be formed in anynumber of ways. For example the seal can be formed by welding (such asheat welding, sonic welding, ultrasonic welding, friction welding, etc.)or by bonding using adhesives.

The sampler 500 of FIG. 12 includes bottom and top plies 502 and 504.Walls 506 and 508 are formed on the bottom and top plies, respectively,such that the walls face each other. Hence, the bottom ply wall 506 isformed on the upper surface of the bottom ply and the top ply wall 508is formed on the bottom surface of the top ply. The walls 506 and 508are shown to be double walls, but could be single walls if desired. Ascan be seen, the walls 506 and 508 are aligned with each other, suchthat their respective end surfaces 506 a and 508 a will contact eachother when the two plies are brought together. Because the walls 506 and508 are aligned, the sampler 500 lacks the interlocking feature of thesampler 10 (FIG. 1), for example. However, the two plies are joinedtogether at the walls to form a liquid tight seal between the top andbottom plies. The seal between the wall bottom surface and the bottomply top surface can be formed in any number of ways. For example theseal can be formed by welding (such as heat welding, sonic welding;ultrasonic welding, friction welding, etc.) or by bonding usingadhesives. The use of double walls facilitates welding of the two pliestogether. Upon completion of assembly of the sampler, the top and bottomply walls 506 and 508 are crushed together, as seen in FIG. 13. Whencollapsed, the walls do not return to their original flat surfaceconfiguration. Rather, they form a physical wall barrier that providesadditional compression resistance to the finished product.

The sampler 600 shown in FIGS. 14 and 15, is substantially similar tothe sampler 500. However, the sampler 600 is provided with two walls 606and 607 on the bottom ply 602 and two wall 608 and 609 on the top ply604. The walls 607 and 609 are outer walls which surround walls 606 and608, which are inner walls. Like the sampler 500, the walls of thesampler are aligned with each other. Thus, the wall 606 and 608 arealigned and the walls 607 and 609 are aligned. The top and bottom plies602 and 604 are assembled together in the same manner as the plies ofthe sampler 500, and, upon assembly, the walls 606-609 are crushed orcollapsed, as seen in FIG. 15.

As various changes could be made in the above constructions withoutdeparting from the scope of the invention, it is intended that allmatter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanyingdrawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limitingsense.

I claim:
 1. A sampler for inserting into an article such as a magazineor a mass mailing, said sampler including a cosmetic sample forapplication to the face, such as foundation, blush, or rouge, saidsampler including: a bottom ply having an upper surface and a lowersurface, and an integral wall extending upwardly from said bottom plyupper surface, said wall having an end flat surface away from said uppersurface, and said bottom ply wall defining a well receiving a cosmeticsample therein; a top ply having an upper surface and a lower surface,and an integral wall extending downwardly from said top ply bottomsurface, and said wall having an end flat surface away from said lowersurface and said wall having a height the same as said wall of saidbottom ply; said wall of said top ply aligning with said wall of saidbottom ply and said end flat surface of said bottom ply wall joiningsaid end surface of said top ply wall thus sealing said top ply to saidbottom ply liquid tight; and wherein said top and bottom ply walls aredouble walls having a height and crenellated form.
 2. The sampler ofclaim 1 wherein said top ply wall and said bottom ply wall are furtherdefined as first walls; said sampler includes an integral second walloutwardly of said first wall on said top ply and an integral second walloutwardly of said first wall on said bottom ply; said second wallssurrounding said first walls, said second walls aligning with eachother, and said second walls having a approximately the same height assaid first walls.
 3. The sampler of claim 2 wherein said first walls andsaid second walls are joined together then said first walls and saidsecond walls of said top ply and said bottom ply are partially collapsedby crushing folds.